I am looking to feature stores/products/companies that do something “good” – maybe they contribute to a specific cause, or it is a company that does not test on animals, or it is good for the environment, or something like that. That is the goal of this – as well as entertaining you! I like to be entertained too so I will do what I can to make that happen!

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

I'm
currently at I guess what I would calla
crossroad an impasse (maybe that's a better word for it?) with Shop
Good - Do Good.

I
enjoy having all of my friends here, but at the same time I am running into a
bit of a problem.

While
I love being able to tell you all about great companies and products, I feel
like I'm not doing a great job of it right now.

Unfortunately,
I have a thing called "the day job".

And
it is taking a lot of my time.

And
Shop Good - Do Good is taking up a lot of my time.

I
might add that it is much more enjoyable time spent here with all of you!

I
wish I could do this most of the time to be honest....with a part time
job.

To
be able to help people all day would be great!

Another
thing that I am struggling with is how much to tell you about my life - my
thoughts and dreams and everything in between.

And
I want to be as P.C. as possible since I am telling you about these wonderful
companies and products and I don't want to offend anyone.

I
know that I'm a nice person, but I have that sense of humor where I crack up
when someone falls, and I tend to crack people up the most whenever I'm ranting
about something random. I'm the kind of person that gets more sarcastic
the more upset that I get.

But
I think for the time being, I am going to cut back to 3 main posts a week - 3
features - and then I will use the other days to research companies, post
reviews, and other general posts.

The
silence from my readers is kind of deafening to tell you the truth!

I
know you are out there.

I
want to hear from you.

I
want to know what you like and what you don't.

Do
you like the reviews?

Do
you like the stories?

Are
there certain types of products/companies that you want to see more of?

I
would love to hear from you and get your thoughts about all of this...using a
famous line "Help me, help you!"... to help someone else! :)

Please,
please tell me what you are thinking - leave some comments. I can't wait to hear your feedback!

Oh
and please know that I am working on something great for all of you - so be
sure to check out tomorrow's feature post. (I'm hoping to be able to share the
details with you then!)

I know it is very late to be telling you this, but in case you are getting a case of the late night hungers or are just one to eat dinner late - today is free pancake day at your local IHOP! http://www.ihop.com/

The proceeds from your donations go to the Children's Miracle Network!

"IHOP will be offering a free short stack of its famous buttermilk pancakes to each guest all day Tuesday, February 28th, from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., and in return, diners will be asked to make a voluntary donation to support the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals program at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia."*http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46558025#.T01pb_Egeuw

There was the Saturday night movie to see “This Means War”
– we really liked it.

Lauren: Okay,
let me think, flaws. FDR has these tiny, like girl hands, like little T-Rex
hands.
[Tuck laughs when he hears this]Trish: Ew!Lauren: And Tuck is British.
[as Tuck hears this whilst watching
them on the TV monitor]Tuck: What is that supposed to mean?
[FDR laughs]

I love Reese –she plays Lauren – (some of you may recall
the “I want Reese’s bangs” rambling) and it is pretty easy to be mesmerized by
Chris Pine’s eyes. Go ahead – deny it and I’m calling you a liar!

And then of course there are the shopping Sundays.

Which is then followed by me spending most of the
remainder of the day cooking meals for the week. This week I made Chicken
Meatball Soup and Beer Risotto with Mushroom Garlic Chicken (minus the
mushroom).

It contains vitamins, minerals, caffeine, and other
nutrients; and it is better for you than green tea.

Just something to think about!

And on that note – I’m going to let you go so you can
check out more about Guayaki and order
some from online or to let you get to your local grocery store to pick some up.
If you need your daily caffeine fix, this might just be something that you
would want to add to your beverage choices!

Kayu makes handbags and sunglasses out of “natural,
renewable materials that are produced in a sustainable manner. Our products are
made from bamboo, a fast-growing grass that replenishes itself in just three
years. We also use buntal an abundant type of straw that comes from a palm and
shell that is sustainably sourced. For our Resort 2012 collection we
incorporated wood from the acacia tree, an invasive and fast-growing plant.”

A bamboo artisan in
China, a shell-crafter in Cebu, a T'boli weaver in the Southern Philippines -
our products are handcrafted by artisans using techniques that have been passed
down through the generations, and seek to preserve and promote indigenous craft
and culture.

OUR CONTRIBUTIONS

For every pair of
sunglasses purchased, a donation is made towards funding sight-restoring
surgeries in India. We make our donations through the non-profit Unite For
Sight. To find out more about Unite For Sight, go to www.uniteforsight.org

For every handbag
purchased, a donation is made towards buying backpacks and school supplies for
children in Cambodia. We make our donations through the non-profit Awareness
Cambodia. To find out more about Awareness Cambodia, go to www.awarecam.org”

Jamie Lim is the creator of Kayu and she strives “to keep our core principles of
craftsmanship, ecology and ethics in mind. All of our products are handmade and
feature natural materials. In addition, we remain committed to bettering our
community by donating 2% of each sale towards health care and education in the
developing world.”

The handbags and sunglasses are very cute and would make
great gifts for your sister or best friend or hey even yourself for a new
summer bag!

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

How is it that I was super crazy busy all day – and yes,
only with work stuff? It was good though – I got a bunch done so that was nice.

Miley hung out with me today too which was an added
bonus. She sat next to me when I was working at the breakfast bar and then
decided to take a nap when she thought she worked too hard. J

Chloe and Libby watched me work for a while too and then
they decided that they were ready to go back to sleep.

And then there was my Daisy dog…she felt the need to be
outside as many times as possible because I was home. Yeah, I wasn’t giving in
to that game today though. Sorry Dais.

I did go out this morning for a doctor’s appointment and
I was really debating on stopping for a coffee but I managed to stay focused
and get back home to do the work that I needed to do.

I have to ask though – why are drivers SOOOOOO bad
anymore?

Someone – please – anyone? Any answers?

I can’t tell you how many people I saw today not use
their turn signals. I don’t know about your car, but I know that they weren’t
an option in mine when I bought it so I assume that all cars come with them,
right?

Then to make the day even more entertaining, or should I
just say – to solidify my point about bad drivers – I heard on the news that a
woman took out 7 or 8 cars at a dealership near my house today too.

(And that isn’t the first time I have seen something like
that happen – see picture.)

*Note the cars to the right side of the pic

Now don’t get me wrong, there could have been a serious
issue there – a medical condition or something - and to that I feel really bad,
but to total a few cars and then wrap your car around a pole after doing so my
guess is that someone wasn’t doing the 40 MPH speed limit in that area (BUT I
will say that I can definitely be wrong - it wouldn’t be a first!). My thoughts
go out to the person involved and hope that she is okay.

I mentioned before that the hubby and I were in an accident
a few months ago – well the accident today was in just about the same spot. And
I have heard of too many instances where friends of mine had their children in
their car and were almost hit by someone texting while driving.

It is scary and people don’t think about the fact that
they are driving a vehicle that could potentially kill another person. Please just think about it before you do
something stupid behind the wheel – before you text your friend or drive after
drinking.

And please just USE YOUR TURN SIGNALS. I promise – it won’t hurt you!
And in the spirit of helping other people – it will help others know what you
intend to do!

Sorry and that’s my soapbox for the day!

Whew – it got too serious in here for my liking tonight!
If you are a new reader –please, read a few of my other posts…I don’t typically
get on rants such as this. I like to keep the posts fun and light – I swear!

Enough of that! Let’s get back to my caffeine fix!

I really like tea. As in, have a drawer full of different
types of teas in our kitchen. I like hot tea and cold tea, white teas, green
teas, black teas, chai teas, and so many other different flavors.

Don’t get me wrong, I like coffee too, but I have to be
in the mood for coffee.

Tea and me…we could hang out together every day.

So it is very fitting that I have found this company that
I want to talk about tonight – Teas’ Tea.
http://www.teastea.com/

I came across this company while perusing the grocery
store shelves one day and saw that they have a Crispy Apple Black Tea. I had to
have it!

Teas’ Tea is a part of the company ITO EN which “was
founded in May 2001 with the mission of introducing ITO EN's line of green tea
products and establishing a culture and interest in authentic green tea in the
United States and beyond.”

They have a strong belief in corporate social
responsibility and focus on the environment, their communities, the workplace,
and even in research and development.

On the environment side of things ITO EN “Follows 5 Environmental
Action Guidelines” which include working to prevent global warming and air
pollution as well as “increasing employee awareness of the global environment. “

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

I didn’t. Well, unless you count the
piece of *peanut-butter chocolate pie that I’m about to eat. J (In case you haven’t noticed I have a wicked
sweet tooth. Again – not very conducive to the diet!)

Random thought of the day: Do you know
how bad I need a manicure and pedicure? This bad (and sorry if you hate feet)!
But here’s my story – I love wearing sparkly nail polish…but I HATE taking it
off. Sparkles EVERYWHERE! EVERYWHERE!!!!

So I have been putting the whole –
taking-my-toe-nail-polish-off thing off for some time now. And part of it was
because my finger nails looked pretty for about a week + and I was pretty proud
of that accomplishment.

I’m just lucky that it isn’t sandal
season. How embarrassing is that!? Sorry – I’m weird about my toe nails looking
pretty. I think it’s to make up for my mom telling me that I have ugly feet.
And that I run like a girl….oh wait – that’s irrelevant. HA!

*The color isn't that great - but there are tons of sparkles in the polish.
I need more sunshine in my life!

Want an amusing story tonight?

Well, the boyfriend and I (now hubby)
were in Universal Studios not long after we started dating. And like all good
episodes of the Bachelor (right!) it started to pour on us. It could have been a long and uncomfortable
day, but like any good girlfriend would do – I decided to jump in the puddles.

And then we were both jumping in
puddles.

And we were getting a lot of funny
looks – but who cares? It’s Florida, it’s warm, and most importantly – it’s
fun!!!

And then he decided to put on my
sandals. I think that was prompted by me complaining that my flip flops were
uncomfortable and that I wanted to wear his instead.

So he kindly switched with me – not a
good look though! J

I found this to be hysterical
apparently!

Is anyone else just about ready for
summer and sandals? I am – well, after that pedicure!

“Sseko
Designs is a not-just-for-profit enterprise that recognizes the power of
business and responsible consumerism to support sustainable economic
development, which in turn affects a country's educational, justice, and health
care systems. The goal of Sseko Designs is two-fold: provide university tuition
for these promising young women through a sustainable monthly income, while
also contributing to the overall economic development of Uganda.”

There is also a wedding line for the brides-to-be and her wedding party!

By now you know that there is a story
behind the companies that I choose to feature. This one is by far no exception.
I love what they do!

“Sseko \say-ko\ Designs was
created to help Ugandan women continue their education. The Ugandan school
system is designed with a nine month gap between secondary school and
university. These nine months are intended to allow time for students to earn
money for tuition before continuing on to university. However, in an
impoverished and male dominated society, many of these young women struggle to
find fair work during this time.

Sseko Designs hires recent secondary school
graduates for this nine month period to live and work together, while earning
money that will go directly towards their university education. These women will not make sandals forever. They
will go on to be doctors, lawyers, politicians, writers and teachers that will
bring change and unification to a country divided and ravished by a 22
year-long war.”

I could take up a ton of your time to
tell you about this wonderful story and company, but I ask that you take a look
at Liz’s story about how Sseko Designs started and where her amazing vision
came from. http://www.ssekodesigns.com/love-liz/

Here is just a snippet of her story:

“I went to
Uganda on somewhat of a whim when I graduated from college in 2008. Over the
past several years, my passion towards global issues, specifically poverty and
womens' rights, had been growing. Yet, I had never experienced the effects of
extreme poverty first-hand….”

“I went to
learn. To understand. To be changed. To break. And to grow.

So I went. And while I was there…

I changed. I broke. And I grew. And I began to understand….”

“I had
entered into a community in a world of brokenness and despair, where there was
so much hope and success. I was just a small part of a simple solution.”

When you are planning your summer
purchases, please add these amazing sandals to your list! “Every sandal has a story.”

*The pie looked a lot better than it really was - a bit disappointing. :(